Futures for equities in Canada’s largest centre fell on Friday, as oil prices weakened following uncertainty around its demand recovery due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The S&P/TSX Composite Index staggered 45.22 points to finish Thursday at 16,530.06
The Canadian dollar skidded 0.12 cents Friday to 75.52 cents U.S.
September futures declined 0.7% Friday.
BMO raised the price target on Goeasy Ltd to $71.00 from $65.00
H.C. Wainwright cut the price target on Bellus Health to $10.00 from $28.00
CIBC raises target price on Exchange Income Corp. to $35.5 from $30.00
On the macroeconomic front, Statistics Canada reported manufacturing sales rose by a record 20.7% to $48.7 billion in June, following an 11.6% increase in May.
The agency went on to say sales were up in all 21 industries, led by the motor vehicle and motor vehicle parts industries.
The Canadian Real Estate Association was due out this morning with figures for July.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange kept climbing 15.68 points, or 2.2%, to conclude Thursday at 741.39.
ON WALLSTREET
U.S. stock futures retreated early Friday morning as the S&P 500 struggles to break past its record high from February.
Futures for Dow Jones Industrials dropped 88 points, or 0.3%, early Friday, to 27,735.
Futures for the S&P 500 sank 3.5 points, or 0.1%, at 3,364.25.
If the S&P 500 breaks out for a fresh record, it would be the index’s fastest recovery from a 30% drop in its history, according to data compiled by Ned Davis Research.
Futures for the NASDAQ, however, gained 23 points, or 0.2%, to 11,198.25.
Airlines and cruise operators — two groups that would benefit from the economy reopening — slid in pre-market trading. United Airlines dipped 0.8% and Delta was down 0.9%. American Airlines pulled back 1.4%. Norwegian Cruise Line and Carnival dropped 1.4% and 2.2%,
respectively.
The S&P closed Thursday’s session down 0.2%. Earlier in the day, it briefly traded above its record closing high of 3,386.15. The gyrations between gains and losses through the day came as tech shares outperformed while names that would benefit from the economy reopening struggled.
Facebook, Netflix and Alphabet all closed higher and Apple rallied to an all-time high. Meanwhile, Gap and American Airlines both fell at least 1.8%. JPMorgan Chase slid 0.6%.
Sentiment was also kept in check as lawmakers seem unable to move forward with a coronavirus stimulus bill.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has said she will not restart talks with Republicans on the matter until they increase their aid offer by $1 trillion. White House economic advisor Larry Kudlow also told the media that the administration and Democrats were at a “stalemate.”
Overseas, in Japan, the Nikkei 225 ended the week with a gain of 0.2%, while in Hong Kong, the Hang Seng index lost 0.2%.
Oil prices gained four cents to $42.28 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices tumbled $11.10 to $1,959.30.
